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Sunday, 28 September 2014

I
spoke about this risotto in the third post I ever wrote on this blog, way back
in January 2011. It really has been playing on my mind for a while.

When
I was eight years old I went on a family holiday to Sicily. When moments are
happening it is hard to know what is going to become a significant part of your
history, and what will be forgotten as a distant memory. This holiday has
definitely become part of my history.

We
stayed in a little place called Taormina, in the shadow of Mount Etna. We saw
ancient ruins, splashed in volcanic mountain streams, climbed acropolises, and
ate incredibly well.

This
salmon and pistachio risotto was apparently a regional speciality in Taormina,
and I remember it blowing my tiny mind. I haven’t been able to find any recipes
for it, and so this is my version, based on a twenty-year old memory.

Put
the salmon fillets on an oven tray, and drizzle with olive oil and season with
a pinch of sea salt and a grind or two of black pepper. Roast for 12-15
minutes, until just cooked through (you can do this while the risotto is
cooking).

In a
large saucepan, fry the onion in a glug of olive oil slowly on a low heat until
soft and translucent (about 10 minutes). Add the rice, and turn
over in the onions until coated and glossy in the oil.

Add
the wine to the pan and let it bubble for a few minutes, stirring all the
time. Once the wine has bubbled to almost nothing, add the stock (I use
fake chicken stock) a ladleful at a time, stirring and waiting for all the
liquid to be incorporated before adding the next ladle.

This
can take around 25-30 minutes. When all the liquid is incorporated, check
that the rice is cooked through, but still with a bit of bite.

Flake
the salmon (gently, so it doesn’t turn to mush) and add it to the rice, along
with the chopped pistachios. Stir through the butter and parmesan, herbs if
using, and season with salt and pepper.

Tuesday, 16 September 2014

This is a
Spanish (my version Spanish-ish) dip/sauce thing, made with roasted pepper,
tomato, garlic and walnuts. You could use other nuts, but I like the slightly
bitter edge you get from the walnuts.

Romesco
sauce works incredibly well as an accompaniment to some simply grilled or
pan-fried fish, and I really love it with sweet potato wedges too, or on a bit
of nice bread, or on a spoon. Basically, it is delicious.

Rachel Khoo
made one and served it with burnt leeks, which had been steamed in newspaper.
That sounded like the kind of bonkers thing I like to do, so I gave it a go –
and I thought the leeks were horrible. If you like your sauce-accompaniments
oniony and stringy, let me know and I’ll give you the directions.

This recipe
is based on recipes by Rick Stein and Rachel Khoo. This amount makes
approximately 6 dainty servings. More if you are less dainty, like me.

30g walnuts
- or hazelnuts or almonds, toasted and skins crumbled off (half-heartedly is
fine)

20g stale-ish
nice bread – no crusts

100ml olive
oil

1 ½ tbsp
red wine/sherry vinegar

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 180-200 degrees (I’m
not sure exactly because my oven only has three temperatures: very hot, hot,
slightly less hot).

On a baking tray, arrange the tomatoes and
peppers cut side down. Hide the garlic cloves under the pepper shells to
prevent them becoming too scorched (this does work). Roast (no oil needed) for
15-20 minutes, until the vegetables are fragrant and the skins have blistered
and blackened in places.

Pinch off as much of the burnt pepper and
tomato skin as you can, and peel the garlic cloves. Put the roasted veggies and
garlic in a food processor with the chilli flakes, toasted walnuts and bread. Pulse
to chop, and the slowly drizzle in the olive oil as you blend until you get a
rough sauce-y consistency. Add a generous pinch of salt and grind of pepper and
the vinegar, blend, and then taste to see if it needs more seasoning or more
vinegar.